Man fatally shot by Dallas police after charging officers with box cutter

DALLAS - A man was fatally shot by Dallas police Sunday night after he allegedly charged at officers with a box cutter during a mental health call in the Oak Lawn area.

What we know:

Officers responded to an apartment complex in the 5100 block of Lemmon Avenue just after 7:30 p.m. following reports of a man threatening to harm himself with a weapon.

Upon arrival, officers knocked on the apartment door. The man opened it while holding a box cutter but immediately slammed it in the officers' faces, according to the Dallas Police Department. Police said they overheard the man shouting, "Put the taser away. I don’t want to f***ing stab myself. I want to get shot," and yelling at another person inside the unit, saying, "This is your fault."

The suspect then reopened the door and "aggressively charged at officers" while reaching for an officer's service weapon. Police fired at the man, striking him in the upper torso. He was transported to a nearby hospital, where he later died.

This is the third officer-involved shooting in Dallas so far in 2026. The two officers involved have been placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure during an investigation. No officers were injured in the confrontation.

What we don't know:

The identity of the deceased has not yet been released pending notification of next of kin. Police have not clarified the number of people inside the apartment at the time or their relationship to the man. The Dallas Police Special Investigations Unit is leading the ongoing investigation.